Simple Education
by Mioda Ibuki
Summary: A mystery, a cloak, a magician, and a hakutaku. Things seem to be adding up the wrong way, and education is nothing but simple now. MariKei, Rated T for mild language, sexual references. The first part of the SE verse.
1. One hell of a angry mime

**Simple Education**

Chapter 1: One hell of a angry mime and some living adjustments

"And that is the legend of Momotaro, the boy born from a peach." Keine spoke, pointing at a small picture on the board. "Are there any questions? …Yes, you."

Cirno lowered her hand and spoke in a soft tone, of course, she didn't understand much, but it was worth a shot to ask. "Are kids usually born from peaches?" She asked slowly.

"No, not usually. That's why it's legend – legendary. Rare." Keine smiled. Her students, of course, being like children to her, Cirno was one of those that she tried to take care of. "It's odd, you see….and it's probably never happened, but it's still amazing to think about, isn't it?"

Cirno nodded quickly, smiling, understanding a bit. Rumia blinked, darkness beginning to surround her again, a sure sign she was confused. Wriggle's antennae twitched up, as if to ask what was wrong. Mystia's wing raised towards the window. Sure enough, there seemed to be a battle going on outside the window, and Rumia seemed worried over that, from what her friends could judge from her expression.

"Sensei! Sensei!" Mystia raised her hand.

"Yes, Mystia?" Keine asked, looking over at Mystia, seeing that she looked a bit worried as well. "….What is it?"

"There's a battle going on outside..." Mystia muttered weakly, only barely loud enough for Keine to hear it and for her to rush outside.

The battle was surely amazing. Sparks flew everywhere, although it was also dangerous. The two combatants were Marisa Kirisame, and a figure wrapped in a shawl. Marisa seemed to be winning enough, but it was still too troublesome, as Keine joined in quickly and began to shoot at the figure. Marisa smirked, seeing the were-hakutaku join into the fray.

"Glad to see you could join us, sensei. Especially with darkness here attacking me out of the blue, da ze." Marisa shot off another spark, as Keine shot off danmaku to match it.

"No explanation? No words exchanged, just a attack?" Keine asked, blinking. Marisa nodded, quickly flying over and shooting danmaku at the other side.

"Really, it's weird. Creepin' me out real good, let me tell you that, ze…" Marisa sighed, but Keine merely shook her head.

"Excuse me? What are you doing here…?" Keine asked the figure, who merely responded by shooting off more danmaku. She quickly grazed, and grumbled.

"It's not going to help you, ze. Just try to drive it off."

"Well, it's best to try to make peace…"

"How do you make peace with an angry mute? You don't. You just don't. It's impossible ground, unless you're Satori, or something like that."

"How can you still spit off cheerful comebacks during the middle of a fight…"

"Charisma. Charisma, ze. Keeping heads held high since the beginning of time."

Keine sighed, but smiled weakly, as the figure hissed, shot off a bit more danmaku, then began to run.

"Oh, look, it's tryin' to run. Should we cut it off?"

"I'm not sure if that would be best."

"Of course it's for the best. We could settle this mime's anger issues now, or we could wait until it brings out something more deadly, ze."

"But I have students, and…"

"It's not like they don't have…..every other day in the school year to learn, or take tests, or whatever the hell you do. I'd personally just sit back and put the crap on the board and wait for them to read it and shit like that."

"And that is why you're not a teacher."

"Touché. But still, sensei….we've got to get….whatever-it-is before it comes back. If we don't get it now, it's fought on your home ground, a student could be next."

"You're using my weaknesses against me, Kirisame." Keine sighed, nodding quietly. It was the truth, however much she hated to admit it. "But…..I have to take care of them for now…."

"….Your loss. Good luck with the impending doom and all. You'll take care of it on your own, right?" Marisa smirked, and got into flying position. She attempted to fly, but landed flat on her face as she tried. Keine looked down and blinked, a bit worried.

"….Marisa?" She asked quietly, kneeling down next to her. The magician lifted her head up and frowned, a small spot with blood trickling down her forehead.

"The hell happened….I was fine one moment, and then the next, I can't fly." Marisa put her hand over the bleeding spot, grumbling to herself. "Did that…..thing…..cancel out my powers?"

"…..It appears so." Keine frowned, crossing her arms.

"…Great. Just….great. I'm stuck in….the human village…..with sensei, her class….and no powers. Not like I'll be able to walk home before nighttime comes. It'd take at least…a while….to get home, ze." Marisa sighed, and took out a small bit of coins from her pocket. "…Oh. Right. Forgot I was dirt poor." She frowned, and hung her head in an overdramatic fashion. "IF ONLY THERE WAS A PERSON KIND ENOUGH TO TAKE ME IN FOR THE NIGHT."

"….You and the sympathy card…." Keine sighed, helping Marisa up. "I suppose you could stay with me. But remind yourself that this is temporary, and as soon as you can, you're going home."

Marisa grinned. "Or when we get rid of Mister-Or-Miss-Anger-Issues."

"No. Not going for that long." Keine frowned. "Now, come inside. There's a first-aid kit in my classroom, and I think the students are getting worried. Whatever you do, DON'T YOU DARE DO ANYTHING THAT COULD LEAVE A IMPRESSION ON THEM. ESPECIALLY ANYTHING NEGATIVE." Keine pulled Marisa close to her and glared down, to hopefully leave a mark on her conscience. Unfortunately, Marisa smirked.

"Would you expect that from little 'ol me?"

"Yes."

"Then you know me well enough, ze."

Keine sighed, and walked inside, a chuckling magician following her.


	2. Orderly Chaos

Chapter 2: Orderly Chaos

Keine marched in as Marisa trailed behind, still snickering quietly. They reached the classroom, but before she entered, Keine shot a sharp glare at Marisa again, just to make her realize that she was serious. The magician only pouted like a small child and stopped snickering, although she still smirked within the span of a couple of seconds. The teacher sighed, and opened the door, walking in with a smile.

"It's been settled." She announced lightly, Marisa shaking her head quietly. "There's no need to worry. The monster is gone!"

"….Are you sure, sensei?" Cirno asked cautiously.

"Entirely! And if I'm not…" Keine went off, but soon trailed into a whisper, knowing, deep inside, that she was wrong.

"If she's not, take out her voice!" Marisa grinned, which earned her another piercing glare from Keine.

"….But how would we do that…" Cirno spoke up.

"It's alright, ze! I've got a few spells to remedy that..."

"You could take out sensei's voice?"

"Mmmhmm. Could also replace it with a deeper voice or a lighter voice…..I think it'd be funny for her to speak like Kourin. So that's how it will be! If Keine's wrong, her voice gets switched with Kourin's."

"Ooh…who's Kourin?"

"…Marisa…..what are you doing here?" Tewi asked. "You usually would have been gone by now…."

"…" Marisa opened her mouth, and then closed it, casting a worried glance to Keine. Keine sighed, then shook her head.

"Marisa and I….are having a sleepover tonight." Keine smiled, thinking that was enough to evade the truth that Marisa's powers were gone and keep all the students calm. Rumia, Cirno, Wriggle, Tewi, and Mystia grinned widely, content with the answer. Marisa yawned loudly.

"Yeah, and she'd better play a damn good game of truth or dare or I'll be disappointed." Marisa commented dryly.

"MARISA! Don't swear in front of the children!" Keine glared at Marisa, as the magician grinned widely.

"Oh…you don't want me to say things like shit, crap, damn…"

"Yes, do not say those things!"

"Bitch, sunovabitch, wanker…"

"Marisa…."

"Git, bloody 'ell, fu—"

"MARISA! CLOSE YOUR MOUTH NOW!" Keine finally lost her patience and headbutted Marisa, making her stumble around, before finally glaring at Keine.

"I've got one word to say to you, bitch…..kiss…..my…..ass." Marisa rubbed the bloody spot on her forehead as it bled more, Keine winced and bandaged it up quickly.

"…I apologize. I lost my patience…..which none of you should ever do!" Keine sighed. "….Even if you're stuck with a annoying witch…."

"Touchy, touchy~ You know you like having me around, sensei." Marisa smiled, rubbing her head.

"I honestly could care less."

"I'm glad you speak in opposites all the time, you know?"

"If that was the truth, I would have said that I loved you by now."

"Oh? You're confessing? My, my, Keine…"

"I MEANT THAT I HATE YOU!"

"How cute…"

"…..I'm just going to stop listening."

Marisa chuckled, then cracked her knuckles, looking up at the clock.

"Oi. When're we gettin' out of this popsicle stand?" She muttered.

"In about…..5 minutes."

"Jeez, too long, too long…." Marisa sighed, then sat down in a desk much too small for her. "So? Any homework, sensei~?"

"Your homework, class, is to try to dress up as your favorite legend character that we've learned about these last weeks. We'll be looking at that on Monday." Keine smiled. "As for you, Marisa…..your homework is to stay out of my hair." She sighed, just as the bell rang. "See you on Monday, children!"

"You're really mean sometimes, sensei…" Marisa commented in a whining tone. "You could be nicer to me, especially when we're having a sleepover, unless you want a tougher-than-usual pillow fight or some drawings on your face in the morning…"

"I'd prefer neither, and you do annoying things…..you do realize that, right?"

"Yeah, yeah, maybe in your opinion."

"…."

"Usually you'd respond to that with a 'Marisa, you're so stupid and annoying'."

"…." Keine marched out of the classroom quietly, a furious expression on her face, her arms crossed.

"Oh, you're not talking to me. Fair enough, I know how to combat this. If you don't say anything, you're in love with me."

"You idiot."

"Ha! I win!"

Keine sighed and left the school building, Marisa trailing behind.


	3. A line is drawn

Chapter 3: A line is drawn

Soon, a small cottage was on the horizon. It was modest, not very large, but large enough to be a nice home. It seemed almost….fairytale-esque in a way, and Marisa only shook her head quietly, hoping Keine didn't see. Apparently, she did, as she let out a huff, unlocked the door, and stomped inside, Marisa shrugging, grinning, and following.

The inside was just as modest. A simple kitchen, a living room with a short bookshelf, a table, and some cushions in front of it, two bedrooms, and a small bathroom in between.

"You can take Mokou's room, she's not going to be here tonight, I imagine…." Keine sighed. Marisa raised an eyebrow.

"Oi, you got a relationship going with that immortal furnace?" She frowned.

"No….she's like a daughter to me, Kirisame. Besides, she's been marching around with that…black-haired tengu lately." Keine frowned, irritated already. Marisa quickly smiled again, probably in amusement, and sat down on a cushion.

"Whoo, as long as there's no Aya juice on my pillow, I'm good~"

"You are one hell of a sickening witch, you know?"

"Known it all my life, sensei." Marisa grinned, closed her eyes, and leaned back, slowly realizing that there is no back on a cushion and falling over, much to Keine's amusement. Keine walked over with two cups of tea, giggling to herself as Marisa rolled her eyes.

"Very funny…" Marisa pouted, blowing hair out of her face. "…And what's this? Tea? Real men drink coffee or sake! At all times! That's the lifeforce of our being, da ze!"

"…..Unfortunately, Kirisame, you're not a man. You're a lady. Ladies are proper and drink tea, and never, never, never drink sake."

"Woah, woah, woah. Wait a minute. You mean…..you never drink sake?"

"Never."

"Not even on holidays?"

"Holidays are for things like….hot chocolate….sodas on things like Shichi-go-san…"

"You've never had sake?"

"If I have to get something that'll get me in a state of intoxication, I drink wine."

"WINE? You're not high-class enough for that shit, ze!"

"EXCUSE ME?" Keine snapped, glaring straight into Marisa's eyes. "AT LEAST I HAVE MORE CLASS THAN YOU, YOU TASTELESS, UNSENSIBLE, IDIOTIC WITCH! YOU ARE NO JUDGE OF CLASS AND YOU SHOULD VERY WELL KNOW IT!"

Marisa blinked, raising her hands up. "Oi, sensei…..didn't know that'd set off a nerve…" Keine fumed quietly, then took out a roll of duct tape and began taping a square around Marisa's room, leading to the bathroom.

"That is your side of the house. You. Stay. There." Keine pushed Marisa into the square, Marisa blinking, but nodding quietly and smiling.

"Don't be surprised if you wake up with something drawn on your face in the morning." Marisa winked, holding up a marker. Keine dived for it, but Marisa stuck out her hand. "Ah-pa-pa. You're crossing the line, Kamishirasawa."

"THE LINE DOESN'T APPLY TO ME! I CAN GO OUT OF IT AND INTO IT AS I PLEASE, BUT YOU CANNOT."

"That's not fair, ze. I'd imagine considering you're a teacher you'd put more emphasis on fairness. How disappointing, you horrible role model. Bad Keine."

"…You are a pest and a bastard…"

"Oh, wow, you sweared! One step up on the maturity level! Yay for Keine~!" Marisa clapped her hands.

"….I HATE YOU AND I WISH YOU'D JUST GO HOME ALREADY."

"Idea. How about we have a drinking contest to settle this, hm? I get overly shitfaced first, I'll leave. You get overly shitfaced first? I get to stay, at least for tonight…" Marisa smirked, her hands on her hips. Keine grumbled, but nodded quickly.

"Good. Been wanting to know what you were like drunk…" With that, Marisa walked off to go get some sake.


	4. Sparked Affections

Chapter 4: Sparked Affections

Marisa marched in, carrying two bottles of sake with her. Keine was sitting at the table, though when she heard the door open, she looked over.

"….So, did you actually have money?" She commented dryly. Marisa shook her head.

"Money for this challenge's on you." Marisa grinned. Keine only sighed, resigned to that fact.

"Glasses are in the cabinet…."

"Glasses? Ha! Real men sip straight from the bo—"

"We are not men. NOW GET GLASSES."

"Jeez, alright, Miss Priss." Marisa got out two glasses, and poured sake into both of them, giving a bottle to Keine, and keeping one. "Cheers." She smiled, taking a sip of her sake. "Now, what to do while this sets in…"

"…I don't know. Usually I'd read, but…."

"Read? I only look at books for magical tomes….stories are usually boring, especially when they tell you the most stupid shit…..magical academy, ha!" Marisa chuckled. "There's no academy to tell you how to be a witch…"

"…Don't know where you picked that one up from…" Keine finished her cup, and poured herself some more. Marisa finished hers, and did the same.

"….Ooh, I've got it. We can play truth or dare."

"Kirisame, are you a child?"

"No, but…."

"Then why the hell are you suggesting such a thing…." Keine blushed lightly, a sure sign she was getting drunk.

"Because you're getting drunk, and I want to see what shit comes out of you." Marisa smiled.

"….Blunt. Alright, I'll take a crack at it…truth for me, never know what dare you could pull…"

"Excellent. So, are you actually seeing anyone, sensei~?" Marisa asked, taking another sip of sake. Keine sighed.

"….Why do you care? No. I'm not…..alright then, Marisa, truth or dare?'

"I'll take dare for 500, da ze." Marisa cracked her knuckles, waiting for a good dare.

"Hm….alright…..well then, all of tomorrow, you have to act like a proper lady."

"Ooh, yikes, shoulda gone for 200….but alright, I'll try, ze."

"I'll pick truth…."

"Ookay. So, what's your fondest memory, eh?" Marisa laid her hands on the table, resting her head on them as she listened.

"You're being surprisingly kind. Would've expected something more raunchy by now."

"Well, it's 12 AM."

"So it is….alright, then. Fondest memory…..I suppose it was a few months ago. Beginning of fall. Mokou and I were walking through a nice apple forest…..it was calm, it was serene….there was a waterfall at the end of the path, too. Relaxing…..putting your feet into the water with no regrets…..it was sort of childish, but it was peaceful and I was happy…" Marisa imagined it, and blushed lightly, finding it a bit….cute?

"…Not like you care…..by the way, you getting shitfaced as well? Ya're blushin'." Marisa blinked, snapping out of it, and nodding quietly.

"I 'spose. You're more lost than me, though, so I'm stayin'."

"Fine, fine….truth or dare?"

"Toughie, toughie….truth."

"Alright then. I'll go ahead and ask you, who're you seein'? Alice? Patchy? Rinnosuke?" Keine asked this, crossing her arms. "Want to know who could put up with you on a daily basis."

"Alice…..hates me, ze. Patchouli hates me more for stealing books, and I think she's taken, anyway. Kourin would be quite a laughable partner, he's…..not my type….at all." Marisa chuckled. "And before you ask, have slight interest in one person….no, not telling you who."

"….Person must be the most unlucky person ever…"

"Mmn, that's rude, sensei…"

"Well, it's the truth….anyway, I'll take a dare to be different….go on, come at me with your best shot."

"Getting sadistic, aren't'cha?" Marisa smirked. "Oh, you're going to regret it. If only for the humor value….hm, act like a stereotypical maid in one of those….dirty picture books."

"W-WHAT? WHY?"

"Because that'd be funny. Can't reject it, either."

"…..F-Fine…..m-mistress…" Keine crawled over, and clung to Marisa's arm. "M-Mistress Kirisame…you did want me to be this close to you, right…?"

"Yes, that's correct, Keine."

"Good. I'm glad I could make you happy, mistress." Keine smiled. Marisa looked away, blushed faintly, and nodded. "Mistress, it's my turn now, correct?"

"Y-Yes, ze…"

"Alright then, mistress, truth or dare?"

"T-Truth…"

"…Do you actually care about anyone…? You seem to only care about yourself, at times, mistress…..it makes me wonder….."

"Do I actually care about anyone?...Well, of course. I care about Reimu, she's my best friend….and rival….and I care about my father….and my mother….ze. And you're my friend, so I care about you too, I suppose."

"You suppose?"

"I mean, I do."

"….Alright…..go ahead, ask me more questions or give me something else to do, mistress."

"…..Truth or dare, Keine?"

"Dare."

"Then you have to take off your dres-wait, what's that thing outside the window…."

"What thing, mistress…?" Keine clung onto Marisa tightly, and looked outside the window. Seeing the figure, she sighed. "It appears to be the figure….I'll go fight it in combat, mistress. Please wait here."

"….K-Keine…"

"I'll be fine, mistress. Do not worry. Even when I'm drunk as everything, I still know how to use my powers." Keine smiled, and stood up, swaying a bit, and then walking out the door.

Marisa sighed, and laid her head on the table, not looking for a moment. Realizing a small affection for a person is hard. Realizing a crush on a person is even worse when they walk out the door, drunk, and trying to wage war against a figure they don't stand a chance at defeating.

But it's the absolute worst for Marisa….as she realized that she would do the same thing, and slammed her head repeatedly into her arm, grumbling.


	5. Hit and run

Chapter 5: Hit and Run

Keine stumbled outside, as the figure glanced at her, two eyes with red iris quickly becoming visible. She bit her tongue, it certainly did seem horrifying to her at the moment, but she began shooting danmaku nonetheless, which the figure easily grazed. Something was whispered, and a spellcard was shot off….one of Keine's, in fact.

"W-Wait, that's mine…." Keine gasped, quickly grazing, knowing the spellcard well. "Alright then…..if you want to play it that way…." She grinned, pulling out a card of her own. "Past 'Old History'." The figure shifted, but quickly grazed, returning it with the next spellcard in line – Reincarnation 'Returning Bridge Ichijo'. "H-How are you using my spellcards….?"

Keine quickly grazed it, though she got hit at least once, pulling out another spellcard to surprise the figure. "Psuedo-History 'The Legend of Gensokyo'." The shots flew out as the figure was hit by one, but quickly rebounded, shooting off another card, this one unique. It appeared to be some cross between Keine's Future 'Gods' Realm' and Marisa's master spark….it hit Keine, and surprisingly…..it was very painful. She crashed to the ground quickly, and wiped her hand on her stomach.

_Blood….covered in blood…._

With that, she paled, knowing the figure was dangerous now. She sighed gently, smiled, as she accepted it was the end…

Until a all-too-familiar witch ran out, casting a spell from what seemed to be her own lifeblood, and making the figure disappear with a horrifying illusion. She winced, but it worked, as she took Keine inside.

"Stop making me worry, ze."

"Y-You…? Worry…? Ha…..you don't care…." Keine sighed. "I'm bleeding and I'm going to die…"

"No you're not, Keine. Stop saying idiotic things like that, and let the witch do her work." Marisa placed Keine onto her bed, grabbing a knife and slicing into her skin, making a small cut that bled. She chanted, and soon, Keine stopped bleeding.

"W-What did you do…?" Keine blinked, amazed. "What was that…?"

"…..I learned a few healing spells for safety. That was the fascia sanguine spell…should stop blood from flowing, at least, but…..should put some medicine and bandage it…." Marisa sighed.

"…You're beginning to sound like Eirin…." Keine smiled weakly. "….You don't have to worry…."

"No, no, you're out of commission. At least for a few days."

"….A few days?"

"Until Tuesday, give or take, at least for doing light work…."

"But…..Monday…the children…."

"Then you'll need a substitute, da ze."

"S-Substitute…..where am I going to find a substitute…." Keine looked worried, as Marisa sighed, and shook her head.

"Look, if it's that much of a worry…I'll sub. Don't worry. I'll be Miss Kirisame, ze." Marisa grinned. Keine looked horrified at the thought, but reluctantly sighed, and nodded.

"All they're doing tomorrow is dressing up as their favorite legend character…..and you just have to read them the final legend…..the tale of Orihime, the weaving princess from the moon." Keine said. "T-The legends book is green, and it's on the bookshelf…..please read it….." She muttered the last part quietly, blinked, half-asleep, and losing her grip on reality fast. "….Goodnight, Marisa…." She yawned quietly, and went to sleep.

"Goodnight, Keine…." Marisa smiled, kissed Keine lightly on the forehead, and walked off to go read the book, knowing she had a long day ahead of her.


	6. Miss Kirisame, your substitute teacher

(Author's Note: I always update so late….and tonight, it's super late. Blame galges…..curse you, Casual Romance Club. Anyway…..this chapter is mostly *FILLER*, anyway , but it's super long, as I like writing for Team 9 all too much w Enjoy~)

Chapter 6: Miss Kirisame, your substitute teacher

The schoolhouse was buzzing as always as Marisa walked down the hall. She sighed gently, knowing that it wasn't the best idea of hers, but it was more-or-less the only thing she had. The morning's preparation had been quite a struggle as well.

"_So, I'm off to go teach the children sex ed~!" Marisa winked, as suddenly, she was pulled back. _

"_Wait, wait, wait a minute. You can't go like that." Keine frowned. _

"_Like what? I don't want to pick on a cripple, but these are my normal clothes and I'm not up to…"_

"_No. They're not professional." Keine sighed, and sorted through her closet gently and slowly. "Here, take these." She handed over a shirt and a skirt, along with high socks. Marisa frowned, raising an eyebrow. _

"_Oi, do you expect me to be the perfect sensei?" She asked, her hands on her hips. _

"_I expect you to look professional. Even if you're subbing, Kirisame, do you want the class to think you're easy, and run you down, or do you want to look mature and elegant and look like a respectable person to them? " Keine said this as if she'd gone over it with herself several times. Marisa sighed, and took the clothes, walking into her room, and changing, putting glasses on her nose as well._

"…_What's with the glasses?"_

"_I need to look like a sweet, mature, respectable person, and the archetype of those characteristics always wears glasses, da ze."_

"_I don't."_

"_You should." Marisa winked, opened the door, and walked out, as Keine sighed, pulling her back one last time. _

"_And remember, like my hangover, the dare from last night still applies. Be a mature and respectable lady."_

"_Got it. Victorian-age morals, sweet and kind personality, thinks sex is some sort of foreign word. Got it." Marisa nodded, as Keine reluctantly let go._

"…_..What have I done?"_

_The magician chuckled, stretching her arms behind her head. Certainly, this couldn't get too chaotic…._

Marisa slid open the classroom door and walked in. A shout of "Good morning sen—" was heard, as Marisa grinned, hearing the abrupt stop.

"Hello. I'm Miss Kirisame, and I'm going to be your substitute teacher." She smiled, standing above her desk. "Miss Kamishirasawa came down with a case of the blooey-blues, so I'm here to spread love-colored…knowledge." She smiled, crossing her arms. "Now….lessie…..oh, right. Something about….dress up as your favorite legend character. So I guess ya gotta present those, ze. I'll take a na—I mean close note while you do, and grade you appropriately."

One by one, the children came up and presented, of course, until it got to the group of Cirno, Mystia, Wriggle, Rumia, and Tewi. The 5 came marching up appropriately, wearing various tin pots on their heads, Mystia wearing clothes much too large for her.

"We are the 4 devas of the mountain!" Mystia, Wriggle, Rumia, and Tewi said in unison.

"And I'm the leader, Shuten-douji! You might know me better as Suika!" Cirno grinned, putting her hands at her sides, proud. "I'm the strongest of the oni and the smartest too! I also like drinking and such…."

Marisa bit on her tongue to resist laughing. The combination of Cirno saying she likes drinking (when Marisa very well knows that Cirno has no experience with beer) and Cirno in Suika's clothing made it hard. Mystia marching up next made it even harder.

"H-Hai….I'm Hoshikuma-douji…or Yuugi…." She looked down, and began singing a song softly under her breath . "Young cherry tree buds and flowers…Five scales of life (life) and Hissage~…Yuugi-san said that they used to sing a lot of songs to keep their spirits up…..that was one of them….she seemed really into it, like she forgot the world as she sang….mmn, I hope all songs have a meaning like that to someone…."

Wriggle approached next, although she was reluctant, Kasen's clothes fit surprisingly well for her. "I'm Ibaragi-douji….or Kasen." She sighed. "Nothing about this bugs me at all, though I don't know why I'm Ibaragi in particular…..hem. Ibaraji's arm was severed by Watanabe no Tsuna, so I had to bandage my arm up…"

Bandage. At the mentioning of bandage, Marisa cringed.

_Keine…..hope she's alright….._

"An awful battle, it was…no one came out fine, you could say." Wriggle smiled weakly, as Rumia approached, adjusting her pot so it didn't make her ribbon fall off.

"I'm Torakuma-douji. Tora….tiger….kuma…..bear. Suika, Kasen, and Yuugi did not know where Torakuma was, but they all helped to try to make something….though I think they actually knew and were just hiding it….for some reason or another." Rumia smiled, the darkness beginning to fade around her as it was visible that she was wearing a fur-covered outfit, some parts with tiger stripes, and some parts with brown bear patterns. "It's really nice…"

Tewi jumped up, jumping in.

"Like Torakuma-douji, no one knows where Kanekuma-douji is, and they turned a bit pale when she was mentioned….they noted she got furious very easily. But they helped and I eventually got something….usa…" She looked down, tapping her fingers together, two fake horns on her head and her hair done up in Chinese buns with small red ribbons dashing out, which went well with the red dress and the necklace, a ruby hanging off of it. "Usa…"

Cirno walked next to Tewi, smiled, and lifted up her head, Tewi blinking, and frowning lightly, as Cirno grinned wider.

"And that concludes our presentation! I hope you all enjoyed!"

"You get a C."

"WHAT? I'm the strongest, I need a—"

"Relax. You'll get a A, I'm just kidding." Marisa smirked. Cirno pouted.

Soon, it was lunchtime, and everyone relaxed…..except for Marisa. The word 'bandages' was still fresh in her mind, and it was driving her insane.

_She's okay, nutball. Relax your mind. Calm yourself. Breeaaaaathe. There's no need for you to worry….at all. Just keep your cool._

"Raaaaargh! I bet Nausicca is going to eat you!"

"Nausicca's a lie and a boogeyman anyway."

"A lie? I bet not….a shapeshifting beast who with one snap can take your powers and use them for their own purposes….? Too scary to not be real."

The two talkers were of course, Tewi and Cirno. Marisa listened in carefully.

"Nausicca isn't real. Stealing powers? I've heard of stealing spellcards, but powers altogether?"

"Mmn! She shifts into a form, takes that one for her own, keeping the powers for her own, and disables most other powers that fight against her."

_Oi, oi…?_

"It's a trick. A trick. No one could do that. Not even a scary beast."

"I'm tellin' ya, she's real. It happened to Suika, couldn't you tell? She looked sad, and she even you could tell that she was trying to change size, but she couldn't."

"Even me? Even me? You're saying that like…"

"…."

"SAY SOMETHING YOU STUPID USA!"

"Usa."

"GRAAAAAGH!"

Marisa blinked, even more worried, as the rest of the day passed in a flash. It practically buzzed, and the only thing fresh in her mind was telling Keine.

_Have to tell her…..no, no…as soon as we get that thing gone, I'm gone, there goes my shot with sensei. But….I want to get this resolved, but….my own personal preference would be that she at least stops thinking I'm just the insane, maniacal, despicable, perverted witch and starts thinking I'm just HER insane, maniacal, despicable, perverted witch….I've got it. I'll confess and I'll tell her about Nausicca._

With that thought in mind, Marisa dashed off, grinning widely with a good mindset.


	7. Delusional

Chapter 7: Delusional

Marisa quickly dashed back to Keine's home, her thoughts running across her mind as she ran.

_Okay, so I know what it is, but how do I nab it….will I get it or not? And we'll hunt and we'll scrounge but we may never find it….that might not be good. And I know that everyone tells tiny lies, what's important is the size…..what if it was just a joke by Tewi…..but if I'm right and we track it down we might be able to capture it….it'll leave all of us free! _

…_.But…my chances of being together with the were-hakutaku would be dead, and I'd have to go back to trying to get some sort of affection from Alice…like hell that'd ever work, hah! The sweet mild-mannered sensei with a forgiving personality is the one for me, although she's pushy and uptight…but that doesn't matter too much! Just have to confess….and then I'll tell her of the monster. I'll get rejected, I know I will, not like my behavior helped at all, but it's worth a shot. If she accepts me, then I'll be her's. Her witch, her Marisa, hell, I'd even put up with the undead boiler if she wanted me to, and that's pretty damn kind, if I do say so myself, da ze._

_Oh…..there's the door. Feel like I'm stepping into hell itself. Hopefully it'll go we—_

Marisa glanced down at the doorknob. It appeared to be a missile at the moment.

"Mimi-chan….?" She blinked, reaching for it. Automatically, it flew off, causing Marisa to yelp quite loudly, and for her to dash inside, slamming the door behind her. Keine walked out, hearing the commotion.

"…You look like you've just seen some sort of crime being committed…" Keine blinked, though she didn't seem surprised. "…What's the matter?"

And with that word, a tiny Marisa appeared on top of Keine's hat, hugging onto it, and rubbing the tassel while blushing...in a oddly sexual way. Marisa opened her mouth, but as no words came out, she merely pointed up at Keine's hat. Keine blinked, taking her hat off, but the tiny Marisa had disappeared already. Keine blinked, raising an eyebrow, confused, but Marisa only looked horrified.

"What? What is it? What's wrong?"

"Hat…..Marisa…..blush…."

"You blushed when you saw my hat?"

Marisa shook her head, leading to Keine thinking it was even more confusing. "Well….whatever. If you need me, I'll be in my room, as usual…" She began to walk off, but of course, the tiny Marisa appeared again, lifting up Keine's skirt.

_White, purity, innocence, virgin, sex, Keine, sex, Marisa, sex, panties, tassel, rubbing, sex….d-da ze! A-Am I having a wet dream or something? No…no, she'd have called me mistress and been wearing nothing more than an apron then…..then what's going on…._

Marisa blushed deeply, glancing around quickly with an embarrassed grin as Keine looked back at Marisa.

"Did you do something, Kirisame? You look guilty." She frowned, as Marisa shook her head.

"W-Wait….you see…" Marisa began to speak, just as a tiny Keine in underwear strutted past, winking at Marisa suggestively. "I-I've been having these feelings for someone and I was hoping you'd give me advice! You seem knowledgeable, da ze!"

"Me? Give you romance advice?" Keine blinked. "Well, I could, I suppose…I've only had one relationship before, but I suppose I could help."

"I've never fallen for anyone before, sensei, so I'd treasure your advice!" Marisa smiled. Keine blinked, suspicious, but walked into her room, motioning for Marisa to follow, as she did.

_Idiot, idiot, idiot! She's not going to fall for your bullshit! Don't be so formal and just say 'Look, Keine, I realized something when I stayed with you. You're really pure despite being so mature and you've got big boo—no, no, scratch the part about big boobs.'_

Just then, the tiny Marisa reappeared, and made a pelvic thrust motion, causing Marisa to grit her teeth and blush again.

_The hell are the horny hallucinations coming from….wait….a minute. Shapeshifting….let me try something…._

As the small Marisa still was doing her humping motion, Marisa flew up an inch, opening her eyes widely.

_AHA!_

The small Marisa seemed to realize this, and quickly disappeared, just as Keine looked over.

"Well? Are you coming?" Keine asked.

"Y-Yeah….just….can I be totally honest and upfront with you, sensei?" Marisa sighed.

Keine smiled weakly, and nodded. "Well, I'd like you to be."

"Good, well…..I've discovered two things across this week. One, I've discovered who the beast is by word-of-mouth. It's a beast named Nausicca, with the power to shapeshift and steal powers…it's been taunting me this whole afternoon in odd ways….and two….I….not sure how to say this…..I've….g-ggk…I've fallen for yo—"

Just then, the tiny Keine appeared quietly, and tripped Marisa, causing her to fall flat onto her face, as it disappeared instantly.

"Are you alright…?" Keine asked, looking down, a bit worried.

"Yes…I'm fine…" _Damn Nausicca and damn hallucinations everywhere. Damn the mad hatter, damn the March hair, damn Alice…wait, she's not at fault, this time. _"As I was saying, before the deadly beast tripped me with an awful imitation of you….I've fallen for you."

"….Fallen for me indeed. You're a delusional witch and you need to be taken care of."

"I-I'm not delusional, ze!"

"Yes, you are. There've been no 'imitations' here recently. You're seeing things, and so, unless you want me to place you in Eintei, I have to take care of you. Please don't fight back, I know delusional people often get strange feelings, but…I'm sure it's not real affection, Marisa." Keine smiled sincerely, helping Marisa up gently. "It's…it's not."

Just then, another tiny Keine appeared in a nurse's outfit, holding a clipboard and shaking her head displeasingly.

"I'm not delusional and it is real! There's one right next to you! Open your eyes, ze!"

Keine glanced down just as it disappeared.

"…Just…go get some rest, Kirisame…" Keine sighed, walking back into her room, frowning.

"K-Keine, wait…"

"I'll bring you some soup later. Leave me alone for the time being, alright?"

"…K-Keine…"

Feeling as though a heavy weight had just been put on her shoulders, Marisa slumped, and walked back to her room, much to the amusement of a giggling tiny Marisa.

_Note to self: Making Keine depressed is a lot more horrible than making her angry. Making her angry just feels as though you've added to a bad day. Making her depressed makes you feel as though you've just destroyed something beautiful and precious...which….I probably did, da ze…._

As soon as Marisa got to her room, she picked up a book, and slammed her head into the cover repeatedly.

_Love hurts._


	8. My little sensei is just too cute!

Chapter 8: My little sensei is just too cute!

And so, both Marisa and Keine began taking care of each other, both thinking they were unwell, one true, one false. Marisa was content being the substitute and taking care of Keine, although rumors did start up about 'Miss Keine Kirisame', and Keine was only mildly annoyed with taking care of Marisa's 'delusions'. Of course, Marisa seemed the most content, making sure Keine was well.

"You really do need to stop trying to work hard, Keine…" Marisa sighed, smiling weakly. Keine pouted, childish, but cute – was always slightly cute to Marisa, of course, to see someone as mature as Keine slump to down to what they declared was 'Marisa's level'. "It's getting hard to manage, ze."

"Says the delusional magician….I wonder if all those years of eating mushrooms really did take a toll on you…" Keine muttered.

"Ah, you know how to get me, sensei…." Marisa shook her head, but shrugged lightly. "Anything ya need, da ze?"

"Just a glass of water would be excellent….oh, and today's test papers, I'd like to grade them myself…" Keine smiled.

"Too hardworking, too hardworking, I don't get it, why do you like this stuff…?" Marisa blinked.

"Well….it's something to do, and I like to see how far my students have improved. It's very good to see it, especially if it's a great improvement. I'm proud of Cirno, especially."

"Cirno? The arrogant 9-ball?"

"Don't call her that, that sets her off."

"I know that, but she needs to be dragged down some way, ze."

"You're cruel, Kirisame…"

"Nah, not cruel, just…..just. Fair."

"I wouldn't say that, you're not fair towards anyone, especially not me."

"You're a different matter."

"…Stop flirting, you delusional witch, and get me the testing papers. Pronto." Keine tilted her head away, refusing to listen. Marisa merely sighed, and walked off, returning with a stack of papers, and a lot of cards in another bin.

"Eh? What're those?" Keine looked at the cards with a curious expression. Marisa's response was a grin, and quite simple.

"Read 'em."

Keine picked up one, looking at the cover, it was a stick figure Cirno holding Keine and Marisa's hands. She already smiled, opening it, and reading the (misspelled) words inside.

"Sinsei, eye miss yew. Pleese comb back and say helloh. And Marisa is nice and shee really likes yew excpt shee's mean two me sometimes and calls me a nine ball, but she messes up my hair after that so she's okay :)  
>Pleese get well soon<p>

Cirno"

Keine closed it, small tears in her eyes, with a smile that'd make any heart melt instantly (at least, in Marisa's opinion). "You had them do this?"

"No, not at all, actually. Cirno suggested it, and soon all of her group…..the student brigade, I think that's what they named themselves….all of them started doing it, which made the rest of the class want to. So I let them, ze. Thought it'd make you feel better, at least a bit." Marisa crossed her arms, clearly proud of herself.

"It did….t-thank you, Marisa."

"Do I get a thank-you kiss?"

"…You really want that as a reward?"

"Yes."

Keine sighed, looked down, blushed lightly, but finally nodded. "Fine, but just on the cheek, you delusional, affectionate witch." She looked up, a blushing but determined expression.

_W-Wah, she accepted…_

"Good enough for me." Marisa leaned down, and Keine kissed her lightly on the cheek.

"Happy?"

"Very. Don't know why it took you as much as it did, though, not like I'm that horrible…" Marisa smiled, standing up straight again, although she was bursting with joy at getting that much.

"You're not horrible, no, but you're not exactly Prince Charming either…" Keine sighed. Marisa stuck her hands on her hips.  
>"Would you believe I wasn't delusional if I said I would be for you?"<p>

"Then you'd be considered even more delusional."

"I swear, Keine, I'm not delusional, I'm telling the truth!"

"You're delusional and lustful."

"Only a bit lustful, and I'm a magician who centers on love, I can't help it!"

"How pathetic."

"Oi, I can be romantic when I want to be…." Marisa sighed, then came back with her most sincere face. "You're more mature than me. You're more beautiful, hell, it's the littlest things you do that made me start to like you. You're cute when you pout, you're even cuter when you're angry, you're absolutely beautiful when happy, and even if you get the upper hand over me a good chunk of the time, you can easily go down to my level and begin trading insults like the best of 'em, against your better judgement, da ze. All those things…."

"You're a sympathetic liar, don't try to butter me up."

"…Fine then, I'll pull out my trap card, ze. The night you got injured, as you drifted off to sleep…"

"Yes?"

"I smiled, gave my most sincere face, told you goodnight, and kissed you on the forehead. You didn't mind at all." Marisa grinned. Keine turned pale, and then a deep red. Unfortunately, she soon turned that red into rage.

"YOU DID WHAT? N-No one does that! Ever! You disgusting, perverted, lustful trickster magician! If I had lesser morals, I'd kill you right now! YOU DO NOT DO THAT, KIRISAME, YOU CREEP! T-THAT'S NOT WHAT'S DONE!" Keine grinded her teeth, furious.

"….Okay, you're cute when you're mildly angry, but when you're furious, you're scary. Why're you snapping at me like this, eh, ze…"

"I have my reasons. NOW GET OUT! I WON'T NEED ANYTHING FOR THE REST OF THE DAY, AND AS SOON AS WE SOLVE THIS CRAP, YOU'RE GETTING AS FAR AWAY FROM ME AS POSSIBLE!"

Marisa raised her hands up, sighed, then walked out as Keine looked at the clock.

"Oh, good, about an hour until rest time…" She smiled weakly, then opened her book. About an hour later, Keine closed it, placing a bookmark inside. "Alright, then. Time to go to….no, I need more water…" She sighed, but weakly got up, wincing lightly. Walking out, she looked at the floor, seeing an all-too familiar shape nuzzled up near her door, a small blanket draped across her and a pillow beneath her head. Smiling, Keine sighed, shook her head, and then crouched down, kissing Marisa on the forehead.

_There's the taste of your own medicine, Kirisame…_

Unlike Keine, however, Marisa blushed lightly, smiling, muttering something under her breath that sounded like "I love you too, Keine"; as Keine walked off to get herself a glass of water.

It was tranquil the entirety of the night….quite a contrast with the next day's events.


	9. The student brigade steps in

Chapter 9: The Student Brigade Steps In

"Student brigade roll call!"

"I'm Wriggle!"

"Mystia!"

"Rumia!"

"Tewi!"

"And I'm….Cirno!" Cirno grinned. "Kay, we're all here. So, this meeting is to talk about….what're we supposed to talk about again, Tewi?"

"This meeting is to discuss the relationship between our regular teacher, Miss Keine Kamishirasawa, and our substitute teacher, Miss Marisa Kirisame." Tewi smiled, placing a drawing on the table. "Miss Kirisame seems to like Miss Kamishirasawa."

"Well, duh! Everyone likes sensei!" Cirno grinned.

"Well…more like….a crush."

"A crush? With a boulder?"

"No, no, no! A crush as in….near love, but not quite."

"Ooh, a crush…" Cirno thought. "Sensei's grumpy a good amount of time….maybe having Miss Kirisame around would make her more happy!"

"That's what I hoped for. Except…"

"Except what?" Wriggle asked. "It seems like there's not much to be bugged about."

"That's just it. Sensei doesn't seem to want to have Miss Kirisame around." Tewi frowned lightly. "So, I thought we'd help her discover Miss Kirisame's feelings and help her accept them." She smiled.

"Ah, so we play matchmaker!" Rumia smiled.

"Matchmaker, matchmaker, make me a match~ find me a find~ catch me a catch~" Mystia sang lightly, pleased with the idea.

"Exactly!" Tewi smiled. "So, plan A. Plan A is for Miss Kirisame to shower sensei in gifts. Flowers, candy, that sort of thing…" She waved her hand. Cirno stared, but nodded, getting it.

"Ah, so things girls like?"

"Exactly."

"I'll freeze her a frog then."

"I don't think that'd be a good idea." Tewi grabbed Cirno's arm before she could go fly off. "It has to be traditional. Everyone has their….special presents, I know, but I don't think sensei would be too happy with a frozen frog. Plus, you'd get into a fight with Suwako again."

"I always escape before she can hit me!"

"What if one day you do get hit and punished badly?"

"Then that would be bad…"

"Exactly, so don't do it." Tewi sighed, being with her friends seemed to be a babysitting job at times. "Wriggle, please go look for flowers. You do know where a lot of them are, right?"

"Yes, I know a good amount around various locations….should I try to get sunflowers, too? Miss Yuuka wouldn't mind if it's me." Wriggle smiled lightly, as Tewi shook her head.

"No, don't risk it. Rumia, you're in charge of candy. Get sensei all of these." Tewi handed Rumia a list, and she nodded.

"Alright! I'll go do it, you can count on me!" Rumia's darkness orb grew, as she stumbled out the door, Wriggle trying to guide her behind her.

"So, what's my job, boss?" Cirno smiled.

"Not yet, Cirno. Mystia, can you do a special thing for me?" Tewi asked. Mystia raised an eyebrow.

"What do you want, Tewi?" Mystia smiled.

"Gifts have to be given in proper atmosphere. Can you please go find a good date location? Something elegant….some place sensei would like."

"Ah, alright! I'll do that, then! Where would you like to go, my darling, where would you like to go, my love~" Mystia flew off, humming. That left only Cirno and Tewi.

"You're really good with dates and stuff, Tewi…" Cirno grinned. "They're probably fun, so I'm really curious what they're like…"

"Mmn, yeah, I guess. I've only heard from Reisen how nice they are, considering she's been dating Youmu-san for quite a while…" Tewi sighed lightly. "Alright. Cirno, I'm going to have you go look for the Prismriver sisters. They should be able to handle the date music and understand the situation…and don't go looking for Lunasa in particular, okay? You might run into Suwako and she might punish you."

"Go look for Prismriver sisters, especially Lunasa, got it!" Tewi held Cirno back.

"No. Do not look for Lunasa….go look for Merlin or Lyrica."

Cirno nodded, then broke free and flew off.

"If she comes back with imprints of a metal ring on her face, I'm just going to tell her that I told her not to…." Tewi sighed lightly. "Have to cover for 'em…"

Meanwhile, Mystia was looking for a date location in the human village, her wings folded back.

"Mmn….so hard to find a good place…" She frowned. "Maybe I should ask someone." She grinned widely, then slipped her hand into the first empty hand she saw. "H-Hey….do you know any good date locations?" She blushed lightly while asking this. The man (Mystia now noticed that he had white hair, glasses, and a confused expression) looked down.

"Why are you asking me…? We haven't even met, and…"

"Oh, yeah….m-my name is Mystia Lorelei. I'm looking for a perfect date location for my two friends…" Mystia said.

"I'm Rinnosuke Morchika….uh….would I know these two? Ideal locations depend on personality." Rinnosuke smiled weakly. Although he lacked much knowledge in this area, it was worth a shot to try and give advice.

"Ah….Marisa Kirisame…" (The man turned pale and his eyes widened) "And Keine Kamishirasawa."

Rinnosuke was quite taken back by both of the 'friends'. The sheer fact that Marisa was considering taking the most mature and elegant woman in the village on a date, much less a serious one, was troublesome by itself, but being so desperate as to send a 'friend' of hers to search for the ideal date material was very worrying.

"Y-Yes, I do believe I know both of them….let's see….maybe a small hillside picnic with a slow boat ride afterwards as the sun sets?" Rinnosuke tossed the suggestion out, and Mystia nodded quickly.

"You sound like you know this quite well, mister. Thank you for the suggestion." Mystia grinned widely.

_So smart about this stuff….wah, it's cool….._

"No problem, no problem. The ideal location should be…..somewhere off to the northeast, not too far from here. There's a hill and a stream running under it." Rinnosuke calmed at Mystia's reaction, although he still worried a bit.

_Guh…..Marisa….and Keine. This does not bode well at all...it's in fact very worrying. Though I hope I at least got the little girl's hopes up….mine are sunk._

Mystia flew away, her job complete.

During all this, Wriggle and Rumia collected the chocolate and flowers. The only thing left was Cirno recruiting the Prismriver sisters.

Mystia flew in, excited, only to find her friends in a panic. "…What's wrong?"

"Cirno. Have you seen her?" Wriggle asked, clearly worried.

"N-No…"

"Oh no, oh no, oh no…." Tewi seemed to be in a state of eternal panic. "She's missing and it's all my fault….she's missing and it's all my fault…."

"No, it's not…."

"YES IT IS! SHE PROBABLY GOT CAPTURED BY NAUSSICCA!"

Marisa walked over, hearing the commotion.

"Oi, oi, what's going on, ze?" She asked, looking at everyone. "Why do you all look so panicked…?" She smiled weakly, clearly unaware.

Tewi twitched, as Wriggle spoke up.

"W-We….we were organizing the perfect date for you and Keine during our spare time…" (Marisa smirked, blushing lightly, amused and grateful) "And….I got flowers for you to give to her, Rumia got chocolates, Mystia found a perfect location….and Cirno was supposed to find the Prismriver sisters to do light music to help the mood, but….she's not come back….we even checked the Moriya shrine and Suwako said she hadn't seen her all day…."

Marisa turned pale. "You don't think…?"

"….We think she's been taken by Nausicca."

Marisa swayed, finally regaining herself slowly.

…_Too many complications ahead…..g-guh….._

As their substitute sensei wobbled out the door, the student brigade could only declare their first mission….as a failure.


	10. Complications

(Author's Note: TEN DESIRES. TEN DESIRES. TEN DESIRES. So fun. I like the new characters, they're so cute….is it wrong to be shipping the tanuki with someone already? ^^'' Probably. I've decided, this takes place riiiiight before Ten Desires in canon. No translated script means no way to work with it, so get on it, translators! 3 Anyway, here comes the next chapter~)

Chapter 10: Complications

Marisa was pale and shaky for the remainder of the day, quickly going home as soon as school was out, unsure to hurry or to take her sweet time and let Keine enjoy her relaxation.

_C-Cirno…..Keine's favorite…..great, ze, that's just….g-great. I'm doomed. As soon as I break it to her, she'll burst. She'll take it out on me, like she always seems to do when she's stressed, and then she'll fly off in search. She's a lot like a child sometimes, despite what her personality would usually suggest….ggk, it's cute, but when she's worried, it's…not. I hope she's not too happy when I get home, seeing that smashed would be too much, ze….I'd have to go into therapeutic treatment, oh, god, I can see it. He'll ask me why I'm here and I'll say because I absolutely destroyed the woman I love and then he'll call the cops and I'll say not in that way but it'll be too late and I'll get hauled off to jail and I'll have to deal with creepy looks in the shower and don't drop the soap and and and…oh, god, there's the door. Time to break the news…_

Marisa winced, and opened the door. Keine was inside, sitting in a chair, reading a book, however, when she noticed Marisa, she closed it quietly, and walked over, smiling.

"Welcome back, Marisa….I think I'm getting better, finally." Keine said cheerfully.

_Great. She's in a good mood. First time I've ever been so disappointed to see that smile…_

Marisa nodded, smiling weakly, she walked in, closing the door behind her. Keine smirked, a bit playful at the moment, it seemed.

"You know, if you're still suffering from those delusions, I've been thinking….maybe we could at least go on a date sometime."

_Oh, god, no. Oh, god, she's in a really good mood. Oh, god, she even wants to….nonononono why today why today…._

"I'd not mind, I know it's probably still delusion, but it's the least I could do for you helping to take care of me for so long…." She hugged Marisa gently, nuzzling her lightly, blushing a faint pink. "It's not like I'd mind too much, anyway…" She muttered quietly. Marisa hugged Keine, blushing lightly as well.

"A-Ah…t-that sounds great! I'd love to…so glad, thought you'd never ask…"

"Idiot. Well, I finally did, are you happy now?"

"Very."

"Mmn…you won't be when your delusions wear off." Keine sighed lightly, nuzzling Marisa again, then letting go, walking to the kitchen. "Well, I suppose I'll go make dinner tonight."

"Mmmhmm, yeah, I'll wait here…" Marisa sat down on a cushion, still attempting to look like her normal self. Keine nodded, smiling, she walked into the kitchen. As soon as she was gone, Marisa gulped.

_This is the happiest and most on-edge I've ever been at the same time…..watch her go back to her usual self as soon as I tell her what happened. Urgh, and I thought I'd made…..unexpected progress. Hell, wish I didn't have to tell her, ze…there goes all that progress. _

Keine walked out, holding two plates of bean curry, placing them close to each other on the table, and pulling a cushion over near Marisa, sitting on it and eating, smiling, content. It just about broke Marisa's heart.

_S-She…looks so happy…maybe I shouldn't tell her…no, no…it's now or later, and we have a chance to save her now. But…she's finally happy…she's finally happy with me….no. Marisa, you come last. After everyone else. You mean nothing to her; she's just doing it as a 'favor' to you. You're nothing. You're just the witch. The lustful, perverted witch. And she's just your perverted fantasy of the moment. Hell, you'll probably be on to Alice next week. Why do you care about anyone but yourself..? You don't, really. You don't._

At that moment, Keine laid her head on Marisa's shoulder, content, clinging to her lightly. "…It's nice, you know. Even if you're delusional…if you just stayed like this…I'd be happy. But…n-no….you have to get back to normal. You have to." She sighed lightly. "If you do want to do anything when you're normal again…I'd be fine with it." She closed her eyes, lying in Marisa's lap, yawning quietly. "Wouldn't mind…at all…"

_S-She's cute…too cute. No. Resist it, Marisa. Just tell her what happened and block off your feelings. That's what'll work. It will._

"Keine, I have to tell you something…" Marisa began slowly.

"Mmn? What is it, dear?" Keine smiled, opening one eye, half-listening, half-asleep. "Go ahead, you've looked like something was troubling you, but…I've been a bit selfish, I suppose. Please, go ahead…"

"Keine….Nausicca got Cirno." Marisa said, sighing, looking away, closing her eyes. Keine turned pale, and trembled.

"W-What?"

"Just as I said. Nausicca kidnapped Cirno….I don't know where they are, but…." Marisa muttered.

"S-She….she got her…no….no, no, no…." Keine's eyes were wide and she was pale as a sheet. "WHY DIDN'T YOU TELL ME SOONER? I…I have to look for her, I have to, she's somewhere in Gensokyo…" She slowly got up, trembling still, still weak. "I have to…"

Marisa tried to close up her emotions, but she was still visibly worried and depressed. "K-Keine….you can't do this in your state…" She sighed.

"No…Cirno's my student, and she's my responsibility. I have to save her…"

"Let me do it…"

"Your powers are gone."

"Let me tell Reimu then, and let her take care of it…"

"No, it's not her territory. It's my responsibility, and even the shrine maiden can't take care of what is mine." Keine was being stubborn, pouting, and crossing her arms.

"No. You're not going."

"You can't tell me what you do, especially when you'd do it yourself."

"YOU'RE NOT GOING." Marisa said in her most commanding tone of voice. Keine trembled, sighed, tears in her eyes, she walked back to her room slowly.

"Just when I thought that I was falling for you…you make me hate you again…" Keine began crying quietly, walking into her room, and closing the door, locking it. Marisa sighed, slowly slumping down.

_What have I done…no, no, stop it….no…no…I'm a monster…_

Marisa ended up sleeping in a corner of the living room that night, soundly, with a frown on her face, even as her were-hakutaku tiptoed by and flew out, whispering silently one message to Marisa.

"…I'm sorry…"

She flew out, leaving nothing to explain her absence.


	11. Kagome, Kagome

(Author's Note: Gah, two in a row….well, I've discovered THROUGH THE MAGIC OF PLANNING that this fanfic will come to a good…15-16 chapters, maybe 17-18 due to including a bit of preview material for upcoming fanfics set in the same verse and the notes that I took for planning this sucker out – which is sort of a tradition carried over from my old account long long ago. I just thought that I'd tell you all so you didn't expect a 60-chapter whopper or something. Nope. That'll come later. ;) Anyway, I hope you enjoy ^^)

Chapter 11: Kagome, Kagome

Marisa woke up that morning with a heavy heart, still feeling awful. "Damn, I thought it'd go away, at least by the mornin', ze…" She sighed. "Keine, if you're around….I'm sorry, I just didn't want you to get hurt…" She looked down for a few minutes, and then looked up. "Keine?" She got up, and walked to the kitchen. Seeing no one there, she walked to Keine's room, and opened the door, stepping inside, seeing the covers were raggedly thrown off as if in a rush, and there was nothing left behind. "K-Keine…please tell me you didn't…" She checked all the other rooms, and then quietly hung her head. "S-She did…"

Marisa attempted to resolve herself, breathing slowly and calmly, before looking around, and finally taking a decorative sword in hand, charging out to look for Keine. "I won't get much of anywhere on foot….dammit, Nausicca…." She sighed, walking ahead nonetheless. "And it's not like I'm at Youmu's level on blades. Most I know is what they've shown in movies, and that probably doesn't work….ah well, I'll go through death to keep Keine safe….though she's probably already been taken as well…"

She searched until the night, her footsteps becoming a slow and steady rhythm. Sighing gently, Marisa slumped against a tree, the blade slicing into part of it. "Whoops…" She quickly moved the blade aside, chuckling weakly, although her happiness died quickly. "She's not comin'…I don't blame her, I'd hate me too…" She sighed, looking up. "Oh, a full moon….Keine must be in her hakutaku form now." She crossed her arms quietly. "I wonder if she's still looking…" Sighing, she got up, taking her blade with her, she continued on. Hearing a rustling, she held her blade close to her, looking around. Noticing a figure with a cloak on, she ran over, curious. "K-Keine…?" She stuttered, approaching the figure. The figure smiled, throwing off her hood, to reveal Keine, completely well and fine.

"Marisa….I…I'm sorry…I ran off without you knowing, and...I feel so awful…" Keine approached Marisa, hugging her, pouting. "Is there anything I could do to make up for it…?"

"Mmn, just get home…" Marisa sighed, smiling, hugging Keine and keeping her close. "Nothing I want more than for you to go home…."

"Are you sure? I could make it up to you in….other ways." Keine winked, taking her arm out of one of the sleeves of her dress.

Marisa blushed deeply, but shook her head. "N-No, I'm good, just get home….I had a feeling that you'd get a bit lustful in your hakutaku form, but…."

"Mari…I want to do it with you, and do it with you right now….you should just accept, delusional idiot…" Keine put her hands on her hips, pouting. "There won't be a next time, you know…"

"W-Well….um….we can do that at home! Y-You don't want to right here in the open where there's animals, and the smell of sex attracts a bear, I read once, and I don't want to get mauled by a bear, ze…" Marisa laughed nervously, still blushing deeply.

"DO IT WITH ME NOW, IDIOT WITCH! I WANT IT NOW! I WANT IT NOW!"

"N-No….what about Cirno, eh? I-I'll be ready anytime, but….Cirno….might get tortu—"

"FORGET THAT LITTLE IDIOT! I WANT MY MARI! NOW!"

"…Excuse me?" Marisa blinked, pushing Keine away. "No. I don't care how horny you are, Cirno's more important than us getting down to business."

"Damn stupid witch…you're an idiot and I hate you. I was going to kill you right after you finished me off just to get you, my pain in the ass, out of the way, but no, you have to reject it, like earlier and that date….hmph, fine then. I'll…I'll just kill you right now to get my peace of mind." Keine frowned, slipping her arm back into her sleeve. Marisa blinked, stepping back.

"I…I don't want to hurt you, Keine…."

"That's fine, then. Makes for an easier killing anyway." Keine smiled, that oh-so-innocent smile that always made Marisa's heart melt…and began chanting something under her breath while pulling out a spellcard. "Activate. 'Dream Sign: Wonderland'." Strings of danmaku flew out, which Marisa tried to graze, but as it grazed against her lightly….

"O-Oww…" Marisa winced, stepping back further. Keine giggled.

"Oh? Did that hurt, Mari?" Keine smiled, drawing out another. Marisa quickly ran away, horrified, as Keine laughed at the top of her lungs. "DON'T COME BACK TO THE HOUSE! I DON'T WANT TO SEE YOU THERE!"

Marisa whimpered, running away, horrified.

_I-I won't….I won't, if that's what you want…I'll do what you want…._

Keine's laughter continued through the night.


	12. Shattered

(Author's Note: This chapter's a bit brief. Hope you don't mind. Next chapter is filler, by the way, so I might be putting up 3 in one night.)

Chapter 12: Shattered

Keine flew through the forest, looking carefully. "She must be here…" She muttered, the pain of the transformation wearing off and giving her a better chance to think. Just then, she noticed Marisa approaching a hooded figure. Undoubtably, what happened next made her very uneasy.

_It can entirely copy my shape and voice…..and….it…..oh no…._

Marisa ran away, frightened, a bit broken, and above everything else, regretful, as Keine twitched, glaring at the other Keine, who was laughing, and shortly after Marisa was out of earshot, looked towards the sky, and floated up, smiling. Keine immediately flew over, and grabbed the other Keine by the collar.

"Nausicca. Tell me where Cirno is. NOW." She said through gritted teeth. Nausicca only grinned wider, shaking her head.

"Oh, no, that….that wouldn't be fun, would it…." Nausicca chuckled, pushing the sensei away and shooting danmaku at her, Keine trying to graze, and successfully grazing quite a few.

"Your idea of fun is very chaotic….why are you doing this?" Keine frowned, shooting danmaku. Nausicca shrugged.

"Urgh. When you two fought me at the start, I was only trying to find a successful seal for my chaos….I'm sure you know what an 'extra side' is, don't you, Miss Kamishirasawa….or should I say, Miss Hakutaku." Nausicca smiled. "I've only been trying to find….a host, you would say. A host to store my powers in…I'm nothing more than an upgrade to the host. Of course…." The beast chuckled darkly. "Then the host's problems will become more apparent, and she'll need to fix them however she can….the chaos, I feed off of that….and the destruction, the deaths….like a dessert." Keine had flown over behind Nausicca and kicked her roughly, frowning.

"What a horrible thing to be proud of…" Keine frowned. "Why did you take Cirno?"

"She happens to be a….average level host. Though with her connections, I thought she might attract some better ones…"

Keine growled, shooting off more danmaku, as Nausicca smirked, grazing them, yawning lightly, then pulling out a spellcard. "Dream Sign: Detect." A small ball of light flew inside Keine, as Nausicca closed her eyes and smirked. "Dream Sign: Nostalgic Blood of the East ~ Old World." Two daggers flew out of Nausicca's palms as rapid danmaku flew out as well, surrounding Keine, every blow feeling worse than the last. Finally, as the daggers stabbed into Keine, the beast pulled out another card.

"Dream Sign: Plain Asia." This one sent Keine crashing to the ground as the daggers were pulled back roughly, the danmaku trailing after her and impacting quite well, Keine reduced to tears as she looked even worse than before. Nausicca smiled sweetly, transforming into Marisa and smirking.

"Oi, babe. Are you alright?" She extended a hand, sweetly taking it back. "Forget it, you shunned me, I want nothin' to do with ya, and everything to do with Alice and Patchouli, ze." She chuckled, hitting Keine with her broom. "Pathetic. You're broken, beaten down, and powerless. How pathetic….how very pathetic. Tsk, tsk. I'll have to give you an F on your planning skills, sensei. You know what that means." Nausicca drew Keine's head up, and headbutted her roughly, Keine crying louder. "And that's for getting such a low score. I'll see ya later, okay? Alice'll be around my arms by then." Nausicca winked, disappearing, as Keine whimpered, getting up slowly, and finally crying into her knees quietly.

_M-My powers are gone….Nausicca tricked Marisa into hating me….Cirno will be taken over soon and everything will fall into chaos….no, no, no….._

_W-Wait…Marisa…..Marisa…..s-she has her powers, Nausicca took her form….have to find her….tell her…_

Keine stood up weakly, and walked slowly down the path she saw Marisa take, wincing at every step, but going nonetheless.

It was going to be a sleepless night for everyone.


	13. Unlucky

(Author's Side Note: This takes place during the daytime while Marisa was searching in Chapter 11. This explains some things to come, plus, it's lighthearted, quite a contrast to what's happened.)

Chapter 13: Unlucky

"This is the second meeting of the Student Brigade. Roll call!"

"I'm Wriggle!"

"Rumia!"

"Mystia! And….wait, where's Tewi?" Mystia blinked, looking around, not noticing the rabbit of luck anywhere, and subsequently turning pale alongside Wriggle and Rumia. "Please tell me she didn't…."

"I-I hope not. We should look." Rumia stated. Wriggle and Mystia nodded. "O-Okay. Wriggles, you look in the bamboo forest, see if she's gone home. Mystia, you look in the human village and see if she's wandered off. I'll check around everywhere else with my really good sight." She grinned, the darkness around her fading. Wriggle smiled weakly, but nodded, taking Mystia's hand and running off. Rumia hopped behind, her ball of darkness fading in and out, keeping her arms up in her T pose.

"Now, where to begin….the forest of magics. I'll go see if Kirisame-sensei's finally gone home too…" Rumia flew off, quickly losing track of where she was going, but landing on top of Marisa's house nonetheless, which shocked Alice.

"….Rumia? What are you doing up there?" Alice asked, raising an eyebrow. "…It's probably got a good view from that roof, but that house is too unstable for anyone to do that on. It'd crash if you put much more weight onto it." She smiled.

"Did Marisa ever come home, Alice-chama?" Rumia floated down and landed next to Alice. Alice shook her head.

"Where has she been gone to, anyway…? I thought it was odd that I hadn't seen her lately." Alice sighed quietly. "Although it's not like I miss her, the forest is much more peaceful with her gone."

"She's been staying with Kamishirasawa-sensei for a long time….hey, Alice-chama? How long does it take for two people staying in a house to be officially married?" It was an honest question that had Alice baffled.

"They have that sort of relationship?" Alice asked, her hands on her hips. Rumia nodded.

"Kirisame-sensei loves Kamishirasawa-sensei." Rumia grinned, as Alice seemed disappointed in some respect.

"I…I see. It's not a set thing, Rumia. People could live in the same house for several years and never get married. It depends. One of them simply has to propose, really, when the time is right…" Alice stated. Of course, it was a depressing thing to know that Alice had been studying these sort of things. "Marisa is a special sort, she may never do it in her lifetime. Keine could wait and wait, but it would never come….learn from experience, I suppose."

"Alice-chama, what do you mean? Did you date Kirisame-sensei…?" Rumia blinked, tilting her head.

"One time, yes. Never again. She's too childish and immature for my tastes…and why do you keep calling her Kirisame-sensei?" Alice was confused as well, but for much different reasons. Rumia grinned.

"Ah, she's our substitute teacher."

_THOSE POOR CHILDREN._

Those words rang in Alice's mind, making her deaf to anything else, even Rumia's last question.

"Oh, and, Alice-chama, did you see Tewi pass by? I'm looking for her…"

Alice only shook her head in depression, and Rumia flew off in search of Tewi, completely blind to what she caused.

Mystia looked around in the human village, and once again slipped her hand into a random person's. Of course, by sheer coincidence, Rinnosuke was the lucky guy again. He looked down, seeing the presence.

_Eh? The little bird girl again? _

"Excuse me. Have you seen a rabbit pass by here? She has black hair, rabbit ears, and a cottony tail and she's in a pink dress with a carrot necklace. She is a friend and she has gone missing…" She said, then looked up. "Ah! The sir who knew everything about dates the other day! You should know, sir!" Her eyes seemed to literally twinkle with awe. Rinnosuke smiled weakly, sighing lightly.

_She thinks I know everything? Gah…did I see a rabbit? Did I? Or is this metaphorical, as in wonderland, so is she asking for Alice? Am I thinking too hard…?_

"Tell me~ Tell me~ Tell me~ Tell me something I don't know, something I don't know~" Mystia hummed. Rinnosuke shook his head.

"I…I'm sorry, little bird girl…" "Mystia. Mystia Lorelei." "Mystia….I haven't seen your friend…I did see a girl in a pink dress earlier heading for the forest nearby, but…going in there wouldn't be a good idea, it's dangerous." Rinnosuke stated. Mystia thought, looking down, then looked up with a questioning face.

"Would you protect me, sir?" She asked.

_Oh, no…_

"I….I have no powers, I'm not a youkai…."

"Are you good with a weapon? Like how Miss Youmu is really good with blades?"

Rinnosuke shook his head.

"Ah! So you're just smart! Really smart~!" Mystia smiled, her eyes twinkling again, satisfied. "Your brains will protect me and we can search together with Wriggle and Rumia for Tewi!" She nodded, having already decided it. "Yes, that's what we'll do! C'mon, sir! Mr…"

"Morichika….and I don't think that'll help much…"

"Mr. Morichika, you'll help lots! The student brigade is always looking for lots of help, especially since Kirisame-sensei is gone…"

"Marisa is gone?"

"Mmmhmm, she left a note saying that she was searching for Keine and that she'd be back sometime. Now come on!"

Wrapped up in his confusion, Rinnosuke could only follow along helplessly.

Meanwhile, Wriggle flew off to the bamboo forest, landing somewhere in the middle. "Ah, I was never good with mazes. This really does bug me. Hm...someone butter-fly over and help me…or I'll be stuck and lost…" At that moment, a rough hand picked Wriggle up by the collar. "W-Wah! Put me down!"

"What're you doin' here, punk?" The voice was a rough one, deep, but just light enough to know that it was a girl…unfortunately, a very very masculine one. The person in question, of course, was Fujiwara no Mokou. "Usually I don't see too many bugs 'round these parts."

"B-Because we're not common! I'm Wriggle Nightbug, and I'm looking for my friend, Tewi Inaba!" Wriggle was scared out of her mind. The fact that she was picked up so easily was enough to make her worry a bit, but the fact that a flame was burning in the other palm of whoever picked her up was enough to make her panic.

"I see. Well, the trickster rabbit's not come this way, at least not lately." Mokou dropped Wriggle onto the ground, quite carelessly. "…Oi, you're one of Keine's students, aren't you?"

"Mmmhmm! Kamishirasawa-sensei's class, yes. Kirisame-sensei also teaches us now…" Wriggle said. Mokou growled.

"The ordinary witch? What has she got to do with Keine?" Wriggle shuddered, stepping back.

"S-She's living with her temporarily and is in love with her…"

"THE ORDINARY WITCH IS IN LOVE WITH KEINE?" Mokou snapped, a mix of furious and horrified. "She should know better than to fall for Keine, she'd have to at least prove herself…"

"I-I'm sorry, I suppose that bugged you, ladybug….I-I butter-fly off!" Wriggle began to flew off, though Mokou grabbed her by the cape.

"Make sure the witch knows where she stands at the moment and that she cannot propose to Keine without another duel…"

"H-Hai! It will be done, ladybug…"

"And make sure to tell her the message came from Fujiwara no Mokou."

"Y-Yes, Mokou-san!" Wriggle gulped as Mokou set her free, and she flew off fast. "So scary…"

Soon, everyone reunited, and they all told each other of what had happened, Rinnosuke standing next to Mystia and listening quietly.

"So, she's in the forest….let's go, let's go!" Wriggle nodded. Mystia smiled, nodding quickly, and Rumia nodded as well. They all looked up at Rinnosuke, who paused for a moment, wondering why they weren't doing anything before finally getting it and nodding as well. Rumia, Mystia, and Wriggle grinned, running out, and dragging Rinnosuke behind.

They all wandered in the forest for a good hour or so, until finally…

"I see a rabbit ahead!" Wriggle called out. All 4 (technically 3, but one was dragged along as it is) rushed towards Tewi, giving her a tight hug and surprising her. The only thing that came out of the rabbit's mouth was not a simple 'hello', or 'thank you', but instead….

"I've found Nausicca's den."


	14. Moonlight

Chapter 14: Moonlight

During the battle, Marisa had traveled to Misty Lake, knowing that it would be empty due to the lack of Cirno's presence.

"I still remember when this lake was a blood lake instead…" Marisa sighed quietly. "…I shouldn't reminisce happily now…." She heard the sound of light footsteps, and prepared for battle as Keine stepped in. "What? What the hell do you want, are you coming here to kill me?"

"No…Marisa…no…" Keine muttered weakly, frowning, worried.

"You're putting on the whole helpless act again. I know you want me to die. I know it. I'm not going to let you kill me, even when your danmaku can pierce me. EVEN WHEN IT CAN, DA ZE." Marisa snapped, pulling out a spellcard. Keine shook her head, beginning to cry softly, shaking her head faster and faster as her tears grew.

"No, no, no, no, no, no, no….n-no…."

Marisa noticed, and put her spellcard up, running over.

"M-Marisa….that was Nausicca…" Keine sniffled. "I fought her….I'm….tired…" She sobbed lightly, as Marisa blinked, understanding, holding her close to her as she sat, Keine laying her head on Marisa's lap, trying to stop her crying. "She really hurt me…I'm still burning…."

"Y-Yeah….I can see that….god, I'm so sorry, Keine…" Marisa sighed, cutting her wrist with a small pocketknife she'd also kept and casting the fascia sanguine spell again. "I'm…I'm a horrible excuse for a 'prince charming'..."

"N-Never expected that….just expected Marisa…and that's who I got…I'm happy, even if I'm injured again." Keine smiled weakly. Marisa looked at Keine, blushed lightly, but grinned, chuckling lightly.

"What all happened…?" Marisa asked.

Keine explained how the whole battle had went to Marisa's terrified expression, and Marisa only sighed, looking away at the end.

"…You know I'd never do that, ze…" She muttered.

"Of course not, it was just a trick to get m-my morale down, but…" Keine trailed into a whisper, sighing lightly. "Answer this. Were you ever delusional?"

"I kept telling you….no, I wasn't." Marisa said.

"Good. I'm glad." Keine smiled.

"E-Eh..?" Marisa blinked, blushing, looking at Keine.

"Exactly what I said…I'm glad you weren't lying to me." Keine closed her eyes, opening one lazily. "You know, after all this is over, I wouldn't mind carrying on that relationship, Mari-kun." She giggled lightly to herself.

"K-Keine-chan…" Marisa smiled, feeling the happiest she'd been in a long time. "T-Thank you, Keine-sensei…"

"Keine-chan. I like that better..." Keine rolled over, nestling herself close to Marisa, smiling, both of her eyes closed. Marisa ran a hand through her hair, smiling gently, as Keine blushed lightly, content at last.

"I love you, Keine-chan." Marisa said, leaning down to kiss Keine on her forehead, as Keine smiled, opening her eyes.

"I love you too, Mari-kun." Keine pulled Marisa into a deep kiss, Marisa blushing deeply, but quickly getting used to it as it continued and a smirk grew on Keine's face. "You know, if you'd still want to, after that whole encounter earlier, we could…." She blushed deeply; Marisa blushed even deeper and smirked as well.

"Mmn, surprised you're the one suggesting it, Keine-chan…" Marisa said, lying down next to Keine, holding her close to her. "I'd not mind it, you know, a love-colored witch never turns down an opportunity for…"

"Get this straight, I read once that it's supposed to be an absolute expression of love….and if you leave me, I'll kill you…"

"Do I look like the sort that would leave you, Keine-chan?"

"To be honest, I never know with you."

"You're very mean sometimes, Keine-chan….do I have to expect insults during the process as well?"

"How crude, Mari-kun, I'll not do such a thing, so long as you keep me pleased…" Keine frowned, removing Marisa's hat as Marisa began to slide down Keine's dress. Unfortunately…

"Um, are we interrupting….something…?"

A small voice in a darkness bubble cried out, as Marisa and Keine quickly stopped.

_Rumia: What a mood-killer. _


	15. Two if by sea, Six if by lake

Chapter 15: Two if by sea, six if by lake

Marisa quickly leaped up, moving herself off of Keine and putting her hat back on, Keine pulling her dress back up, both blushing, and laughing nervously. Wriggle's mouth was wide open, Rumia's head was tilted, confused, Tewi was smirking contently, and Mystia's eyes were covered by a pale and blushing Rinnosuke.

"Ohohoho, I believe we've caught the witch and sensei at a bad time. I declare our quest to get these two together a success…" Tewi commented dryly. "Next time, you'd best not attempt it in the open…"

"Shut up, you, da ze. Anyway….why're you all here?" Marisa asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Oh, right….well, I believe we've found Nausicca's den." Tewi said. "We were lookin' for you two all day...jeez, if we'd known what was going on, we wouldn't've bothered until tomorrow, but…"

"Oi, stop it, Inaba…" Marisa sighed.

"Well, I'm frankly just glad we didn't walk in on you any later…"

"I'll make rabbit stew if I hear one more word, da ze!"

"Usa."

"RABBIT STEW IS TONIGHT'S MIDNIGHT SNACK, COME HERE, YOU—"

Keine quickly held onto Marisa's dress to keep her from attacking the rabbit.

"You've found Nausicca's den? W-Where is it….and why were you going there, you could have gotten killed!" Keine frowned, looking down at Mystia, Rumia, and Wriggle, who hung their heads.

"S-Sorry, sensei…" Wriggle said.

"…Wanted to find Cirno…" Tewi sighed. "I 'spose I did, in a way…"

"Sensei, are you going to fight Nausicca?" Rumia asked, just as Keine attempted to float up, but it was only a jump.

"S-She transformed into Marisa, so….I suppose it's up to Marisa now." Keine sighed.

"Oi, I have to be the hero again, da ze?" Marisa smirked.

"Yes, you do, dear…" Keine smiled weakly.

"Then I'd best get a good reward from my princess." Marisa crossed her arms, but pulled Keine closer and hugged her tightly. Keine blushed, but muttered just loud enough for only Marisa to hear "Yeah, yeah, you will…" Marisa grinned wider, standing with a determined look on her face. "Alright, lead me to the den. I'll exterminate this pest and get your nine-ball back for ya."

Wriggle, Rumia, and Mystia nodded, running off, Mystia dragging Rinnosuke behind as Marisa chuckled, Tewi staying behind and muttering "She's not a nine-ball…" before dashing after. Marisa extended a hand to Keine, following after, the witch and the teacher holding hands.

"I meant it about the reward, too. It'd best be good, da ze." Marisa dryly commented during the walk over.

"…Mmn, picking up before we were interrupted be good enough?" Keine smiled.

"Ooh, that's good enough a reward, plus rescuing you again is good, too." Marisa sighed contently. Keine shook her head.

"It'd best be good enough, I'll kill you if it's not…"

"Touchy, touchy, ze."

"W-Well….don't toy with me, Kirisame…"

"But touchy Keine-chan is cute Keine-chan…"

"I don't see how…"

"Then again, all the time Keine-chan is cute Keine-chan." Marisa kissed Keine on the cheek lightly, Keine rolled her eyes, but smiled.

Mystia looked back, then clinged tighter to Rinnosuke, which got quite a good laugh out of Marisa.

"Love is blooming in all the wrong places, da ze…" She smirked, Rinnosuke twitching and walking faster, which caused her to laugh even harder. "Oh, god….too much, da ze, too much."

"You shouldn't tease, it's a innocent crush…" Keine sighed.

"Nah, nah, it's cute." Marisa shrugged, then started on a random topic. "Oi, remember that one night when I wandered into the village, drunk, and ended up collapsing in your arms?"

"Yes. You caused havoc and mayhem with everyone and called Akyu 'Suika's bitch', which made her cry. Had to reassure her for an hour or so…"

"Hahahaha….whoo, boy, da ze….that was too fun. Plus the fact that you let me snuggle you for most of the night and then took me home….ah, I was content…." Marisa sighed. "I remember one thing the most about that."

"Which was?"

"The stars seemed more beautiful than usual that night."

Keine smiled, seeing something far off in the distance. "…Bit more, then you'll have to swoop in and save the day." She commented.

"Right, then. Too bad I lost Mimi-chan….she'd be so excited to see this fight, vengeful little thing that she was, da ze. Have a feeling Nitori took her….hmph, I should get her back." Marisa pouted.

"That might be a bit hostile."

"Well, she took my pet missile!"

"….A pet missile."

"She didn't have anything dangerous in her."

"I shouldn't be surprised but I am."

"Tch…." Marisa smirked, but then looked up at the stars, regaining her peaceful smile, not worrying about what was to happen soon. "…Hey, you know when I fell for you?"

"Mmm? When?"

"It was….still when I was dating Alice, actually. Our third meeting, ze."

"….Way back then?"

"Yes. It was cute, how you decided that you had a bit of 'regret for your actions' and how you apologized…and you know what I decided?"

"Mmm?"

"Well, the only person who could attack someone not once, but twice, and then walk over, offer to make tea, and still knew when to call me out when I stepped over the line….wow. 'Course, hid it to you and myself with trying to stay away and mostly being an insulting jackass until the beginning of this incident, but…" Marisa smiled. "Didn't work."

"All the better for me, then…" Keine smiled. "….If you enter that cave and never come back, in the afterlife, you're getting a lot of pain…"

"I'll be back, da ze, don't worry, Keine-chan, I've got a plan…" Marisa grinned, winking, but slowly taking on a serious face. "I want you to stay outside the cave, and if I call for you, dive in. It's probably only got our transformations that're powerful enough and practiced with, so it'll not be too much of a chore if we work together. Got it?"

Keine nodded.

The cave seemed to loom over, the darkness inside….unknowing.

And Keine could only hope that Marisa's plan worked.


	16. Magus Night

(AN: Someone asked where Daiyousei was in the reviews. It's more or less because she's not a character I like to write for, she's….not exactly one I EVER planned to include, this story or otherwise. To me, she's just not one I'd like to write, or roleplay. ^_^'' Sorry….

Anyway. SECOND-TO-LAST CHAPTER AHOY!)

Chapter 16: Magus Night

And so, with that, the Student Brigade, Keine, and Rinnosuke had gathered around the cave….Nausicca's den.

"Well, Marisa, your time to shine." Tewi smiled.

"Righty then. Before I go in, I'd like to say a few things…Keine, I love you, you'll be what I'm fighting for, Rinnosuke, if I don't come back, you're the man of the household and I need you to start saying da ze more, it's cool and all true men should do it. Tewi, I'll get Cirno back for ya." She winked, Tewi frowned. "Alrighty then! If I don't come back, give Reimu my best and tell her I'll have a nice danmaku battle with her on the other side." She tipped her hat, and walked into the cave, Keine sighing lightly, worried.

"Here, Naussie, Naussie, Naussie, Naussie, da ze! The exterminator is here to get ya out of Gensokyo…" Marisa smirked bravely.

"W-We're back here!" Cirno called. "LALALALALALA!"

Marisa ran towards the noise of Cirno's voice, leading her to trip over a sleeping Marisa clone, or, shall we say, Nausicca. "W-Woah…agh…" She looked up, seeing the clone rise, she whistled, her broom swooping down and picking her up. "So, you're awake, eh? Good. Kirisame Exterminators here, open for business." She chuckled, pulling out a spellcard. "Sure-Fire Master Spark." She tossed the spellcard up, it disappearing into the air, and a beam of light quickly formed between her hands, it hitting Nausicca directly, although she attempted to graze it. "Ooh, half-asleep monster is an out-of-practice monster." She smirked, crossing her arms. "How sad…"

"Kirisame….I could help yo—"

"No. No, you couldn't. You wrecked my relationship while you were about, you tried to kill me and my girlfriend…..no." Marisa crossed her arms, but quickly tossed up another spellcard. "Dragon Meteor."

Another beam of light soared down, hitting Nausicca directly, but the spirit wouldn't die that easily.

"Alright, then, Kirisame…" Nausicca chanted something under her breath, and then threw a spellcard. "Dream Sign: Detection." The spellcard changed into a ball of light, Nausicca closing her eyes and thinking as it made impact. "Dream Sign: Love Colored Magic."

Nausicca formed her hands into a heart, an arrow coming out and trying to pierce Marisa, which she dodged quite easily. Unfortunately, a beam shot behind her, catching her by surprise, and leading her to get burned a bit by it. "D-Damn…"

"Dream Sign: Vessel of Stars~ Casket of Star." Nausicca muttered, as stars rained from above, which Marisa dodged quite easily.

"So boring, Nausicca, though I'd like to learn a few of these. Maybe I'll pick it up when you're gone." Marisa yawned lazily, cracking her knuckles as Nausicca got annoyed. "Go ahead, pick a more powerful o—"

"DREAM SIGN: THE WITCHES' BALL ~ MAGUS!" Nausicca quickly launched off three attacks, one being a starstorm, one being a barrage of the elements, and one being several smaller Marisas holding needles, all aimed at Marisa.

"Now, this is what I'm talkin' about." Marisa grinned, beginning to soar through with a bit more difficulty. Nausicca swore as she changed into Keine, Marisa biting her lip, and only hoping she would hear.

"K-KEINE-CHAN!"

Nausicca dived at Marisa, seeing the opportunity as Marisa fell, just as Keine flew in, and kicked Nausicca away.

"Don't you dare hurt her…" Keine glared. "I'll take care of you yet…" She drew out a spellcard, glaring. "Past 'Old History'." The danmaku flew, hitting Nausicca several times before she grazed.

"Dream Sign: Detection…" Nausicca gasped, sending out another spirit. Keine quickly pulled out another spellcard, evading the spirit's direction.

"Reincarnation : 'Returning-Bridge Ichijo'!" Keine quickly followed it up, Marisa watching with an expression that seemed like she should have hearts in her eyes. Nausicca got hit repeatedly, twitching, about to fall to the ground. "And now, to finish it….Future: Next History." Keine smirked, flying down as Nausicca got pelted repeatedly, and grabbed the beast by the neck. "Oh, and this is for hurting my girlfriend." Keine leaned back, and then slammed her horns into Nausicca's head, the beast falling down and slamming straight into the ground, Keine dusting her hands off and landing next to Marisa, who pulled her close and kissed her deeply, Keine blushing and returning it.

A few minutes later, Nausicca arose again, with Keine and Marisa turning back.

"You may have destroyed me now, but I can still find a host….and I think I've found a good one...A ETERNAL HAKUTAKU!" Nausicca chuckled darkly, trying to dive into Keine, who twitched, screaming, as Marisa held her hand tightly and demanded her to resist, which she did. Nausicca quickly began flying out of the cave, and the two ran after it, just in time to see it find a new good host….Rumia.

Marisa cursed, seeing Rumia begin screaming and the darkness orb fading in and out, but thought quickly, seeing the ribbon on Rumia's head. She ran over, holding Rumia's hand and the ribbon and chanting softly. Soon enough, Rumia was back to normal, but the ribbon glowed faintly, then began to look like its normal self.

"Never. Take. That. Amulet. Off, and never let anyone else touch it…got it, ze?"

"O-Okay…." Rumia blinked, trying to reach her amulet, and failing, as per the usual, although she could definitely detect an increase in her powers.

"Alright, good…..now, everyone, let's go get Cirno." Marisa grinned, taking Keine's hand again, and walking back into the cave darkness.

Somehow, it didn't seem that intimidating anymore.


	17. Happily ever after?

Chapter 17: Happily Ever After?

"Can't believe that you all had to come rescue me…." Cirno pouted.

"Well, would you have liked to stay in the cave for the rest of your life and turn into a moleman?" Marisa asked, her arms behind her head.

"That happens?" Cirno asked, her mouth wide open. Marisa nodded.

"Yup. And then you start eating babies and spittin' out their innards like some bizarre –"

"Marisa!" Keine frowned, running up next to the magician. "Stop scaring her."

"So….cool….can I go back and be a moleman?" Cirno asked, grinning. Keine frowned and shook her head, pinching the bridge of her forehead as Marisa laughed, ruffling Cirno's hair.

"Nah, you're not insane enough, sorry. Only people who would be are myself and Reisen and Reisen's never looked up to the challenge." Marisa shrugged.

"You should teach me how to be insane like you so I can be the strongest moleman…" Cirno said, thinking. Marisa ruffled her hair again, taking Keine's hand with the other hand. Cirno giggled, but quickly flew back, taking Tewi's hand, who raised a eyebrow.

Cirno smiled, walking ahead, as Tewi frowned, still confused.

"So, do you plan on staying at my house still?" Keine asked, a bit sarcastic.

"Can I sleep in your bed?" Marisa smirked, as Keine smiled.

"Well, probably…" Keine wasn't prepared for the hug next.

"Mmn, sleeping next to you all the time….beautiful thought….though I hope you're not a snorer…" Marisa yawned lightly. "Think it's already mornin'….urgh, we battled through the night…"

"I know, I'm pretty tired too, but…." Keine sighed. "Can't help that."

"By the way, Kirisame-sensei?" Wriggle had run up.

"Yeah, Wriggle?"

"Mokou-san says that you need to have another duel with her before you can propose to Keine."

Marisa blinked, blushing lightly, Keine giggled, shaking her head, blushing lightly as well.

"I will, I will, she'd better be ready…."

"Don't beat her too badly, or she'll be angry for days…" Keine shook her head.

"Oi, that'd be a telltale and I'm going to surprise you when it happens…" Marisa kissed Keine on the cheek. "So, of course I'll get hit a bit so she doesn't whine."

"Good." Keine laid her head on Marisa's shoulder. "I love you….and I'm tired, carry me?"

"Love you too….and sure, why not…" Marisa picked Keine up, bridal style, as the were-hakutaku curled close to Marisa, blushing lightly and closing her eyes.

Cirno noticed, and made an attempt to pick Tewi up as well, but failed, the rabbit hitting her with her mallet.

"Nice try." Tewi frowned, as Cirno rubbed her head.

"Ow, was just carrying you to be nice…."

"You were carrying me so that I'd say that I liked you."

"You said it, you just said it!" Cirno grinned. "You saiiiid I like you!"

"I…I did not!" Tewi blushed lightly, as Cirno danced around.

"You like me, you like me~"

"Shut up!"

"You love me, you love me~"

"I'll hit you with my mallet again!"

"Okay, I'll stop…"

Mystia yawned, flying up. "Mr. Morichika, can you carry me, I'm really tired…." She rubbed her eyes as Rinnosuke nodded quietly, taking the small bird into his arms.

"Thank you, sir…" Mystia closed her eyes and instantly went to sleep.

Wriggle sighed, alone, as she looked down, but then looked up.

Happiness was everywhere, although no one really did realize what Nausicca could have done to the youkai.

It was a incident prevented.

And for once, above all things….

A incident caused something good to happen.

**The End**

Stay tuned for bonus material!


	18. Bonus 1

Bonus: In which The Student Brigade props my fics

Suddenly, a giant sign dropped down, interrupting the credits that were sure to follow after a good fanfiction like this one, such as author and special thanks….and….author….and….special thanks.

_(Special Thanks are to Lunasa's Imperfect Touhou Forum, Touhoubook, and ZUN, by the way.)_

Cirno fluttered out, motioning as Tewi, Wriggle, Rumia, and Mystia walked out afterwards.

"So, I suppose this is the spot where the author advertises her upcoming works, eh?" Cirno grinned. "How shameless, abusing your first fans like this."

"The author should be very ashamed of herself." Rumia nodded. Cirno gave a thumbs up.

"Anyway, let's get on with it." Tewi smiled, reading from a notecard. "The first fanfic she'd like to present stars all of us—"

"Wow, really? So the author must not be that bad after all!" Cirno blinked, smiling, her tongue sticking out.

"Good job, Miss Author!" Rumia smiled.

"It's called….oh, it's got a long title. **The Continuing Adventures of the Student Brigade! Is this fanfic on?**"

"The longer, the better! Sounds amazing already!" Cirno put her hands on her hips. "And not just because it stars everyone's favorite ice fairy, me."

"…I'm not even going to comment on that." Tewi frowned. "Anyway. It has action, adventure, all the romance that you love, and is planned to update a chapter a day, which is really remarkable….I hope she keeps up with it."

"If she gets more fans, she will." Cirno winked.

"….How egotistic, speaking on behalf of Miss Author."

"Well, I'm just saying what she means, in all actuality."

"She means that she's lazy sometimes. Fans are a number, the more the better, but don't expect anything great."

"It'll be great, it has me!"

"….You're egotistical and a spoiled brat, and I hope sensei gives you another headbutt. Anyway. It's going to tie into most of her Touhou fanfiction, so reading it might be a good idea if you're planning on reading most of Lady Author's future works."

"But of course you will. So read it!"

"You're not motivating anyone…" Tewi frowned, flipping to a new notecard. "Ahem. What happens when New York meets Touhou?"

Wriggle raised her hand. "Yes, Wriggle?"

"Chaos?"

"Exactly! Chaos and a lot of danmaku. So, stay tuned for **The Real Touhou**, where a few members of the Touhou project swoop in and display their danmaku in central square. More sake, more humor, more MariKei! It's going to be a wild ride and hopefully one you'll stick around for." Tewi smiled.

"Will it have me in it?" Cirno asked.

"No. But the starting point will be in our story."

"Good enough."

"….Hey, Tewi? This journal was on this chair." Rumia held up a small floral-patterned diary. She opened it, and read inside. "The Diary of…H-Hieda no Akyu?"

"Ah….we should give it back to her…" Tewi nodded. "Don't read i—"

"No, no, no. What you do with a diary is you publish it to the internet and say the characters are all made up and that all resemblances are unintentional. Then when someone snitches, you deny everything!" Cirno flew over, and swiped the journal. "We'll call it **Uncle Packer's Toesniffin' Jamboree**."

"….How about we call it **Flavor of Life**?" Wriggle smiled.

"Or that, yeah." Cirno nodded. "Good enough. I'LL GO PUBLISH THIS TO THE INTERNET!" She laughed evilly, flying off.

Tewi twitched, looking down at her notecards. "U-Usa? It was on here this whole time and she stated that Akyu had given permission? U-Usa…." She flipped notecards. "U-USA? CIRNO'S WEIRDLY TITLED STORY WAS ON HERE TOO, BUT IT WAS CANCELLED?" She flipped notecards again. "A-Ah….something that seems normal…ahem. A few more oneshots and a few more stories are to come, but for the moment, Flavor of Life is the only one that does not spawn directly from Student Brigade, at least in the Simple Education verse. Please stay tuned for more. The planning notes that I took will follow these previews. Thank you for reading!" Tewi looked up, smiled, and waved, issuing another block of text onto the screen, and dragging Mystia, Rumia, and Wriggle off.


	19. Bonus 2

**Simple Education**

Author's Note: This was the original planning sheet for this fanfic. I thought I'd put it up for those who were curious about what went down in my head as planning, and what went down in my head writing the actual story. :) I've noted the changes here.

Table of Contents (with sidenotes)Chapter 1: One hell of a angry mime, and some living adjustments

Story begins. Marisa ends up living with Keine. (Pretty simplistic, I only padded out a small idea for this one.)

Chapter 2: Orderly Chaos

Marisa is introduced to the class. Chaos happens, Keine refuses to speak to Marisa for the rest of the day. (Not much was changed here. The third part was reduced to a detail, but…)

Chapter 3: A line is drawn

Keine draws a line in the middle of her home, declaring that Marisa has one side for the night. Marisa swears and ultimately sparks a drinking contest with Keine. (The whole line thing didn't get big as I thought it would. More just a quirk, which makes the name of this chapter sorta pointless. ^^'')

Chapter 4: Sparked Affections

Keine, a lightweight, tries to outdrink Marisa. She fails. A few things that make Marisa's affections spark are said by Keine during an impromptu game of truth or dare. (Didn't make it as long as I expected, my mind wasn't working then. THAT was when she was supposed to fall for Keine, but…didn't pan out well in my mind. ^^'')

Chapter 5: Hit and run

The figure is fought again, injuring Keine quite well. Marisa stays at Keine's house for a while longer, using this as an excuse to keep staying. (Nothing changed.)

Chapter 6: Miss Kirisame, your substitute teacher

Make this appear like a filler chapter. Marisa has to fill in for Keine at the schoolhouse, begins to hear stories of a shapeshifting beast named Nausicca. These are dismissed as rumors, however, a new one about 'Miss Keine Kirisame' starts up. (The last part was put into 'Delusional'. This was supposed to be sort of an important-chapter-in-disguise, but it was pretty much filler.)

Chapter 7: Delusional

The figure begins to deliberately play tricks on Marisa, leading Keine to believe that Marisa has become delusional. Marisa confesses her affections and Keine automatically dismisses Marisa as delusional. Marisa begins to grow a large hate for the figure, realizing that it's aiming for chaos and she's now become a target. (Nothing changed, though it was a bit more lighthearted than expected.)

Chapter 8: My little sensei is just too cute!

Keine and Marisa take care of each other. Marisa reveals what she heard Keine say during the first night. Keine gets embarrassed, locking herself in her room and not coming out. Marisa ends up sleeping in front of Keine's room, as she notices later. (It got changed as I decided to make it a bit more leaning towards just fluff, and Keine being out-of-commission, this was my chance. I think it went well. ^^)

Chapter 9: The Student Brigade steps in

The student brigade, otherwise known as Team 9 + Tewi step in and decide that it's time for their sensei to finally realize the affections of the witch. Cirno ends up getting kidnapped by the figure as Keine's sent into a panic. (Nothing changed, really.)

Chapter 10: Complications

Marisa is determined to help Keine, although she declares that she wants to do it by herself and that Marisa is nothing but a pain in the ass. Keine sneaks out while Marisa is sleeping, and Marisa is torn between staying and doing what Keine wishes or going to help her, although she may hate her for it. (Marisa's decision-making was moved to Chapter 11. This was mostly because I found a good ending part already, so I didn't have to worry about finding an ending with that added.)

Chapter 11: Kagome, Kagome

Marisa flies after Keine, although she now realizes that Keine's probably been captured as well. Seeing the figure in the distance, she flies after it, only to notice the figure slipping off the shawl to be revealed as what *appears to be* Ex Keine. (Originally, Marisa and Keine weren't supposed to know about the transformation powers, but it was hard to keep them out of the story, so I added them back in a bit early. Marisa was supposed to gain her powers back temporarily somehow, but this was….a bit too far-fetched, and it was a bit more beautifully paranoid to see Marisa go out by herself with no powers. So this was probably the one I changed most.)

Chapter 12: Shattered

Marisa has flown away after seeing such a thing, and Keine fights….herself? Ex Keine keeps the location of Cirno hidden, only turning into Marisa at the last second, and taunting Keine as she disappears. Keine realizes her powers are now gone as well….although at the gain of Marisa's returning.

Chapter 13: Unlucky

The student brigade now searches for Cirno, leading to a small mystery of their own as they realize Tewi is now gone as well. Filler. Chapter. (I put this one in to distract for a bit, to keep it a bit lighthearted compared to Marisa and Keine's events. A bit…..odd right then, but the detail at the end kept it related.)

Chapter 14: Moonlight

Marisa stays by Misty Lake, knowing that no one would look for her there. Keine shows up, ragged, and it only gets worse as Marisa gets defensive against her. Keine begins to cry, too weak to fight, as Marisa quietly listens and tries to calm her. Marisa declares her love for Keine, although she doesn't respond. (Changed to be more fluffy and heartwarming.)

Chapter 15: Two if by sea, Six if by lake

The student brigade intrudes on Marisa and Keine's 'moment' and explains that they've found the location of Cirno. Marisa listens intently, as she sighs, preparing for battle. Keine quietly wishes her luck as Marisa smiles and promises she'll be back. (Also changed to be more fluffy and heartwarming.)

Chapter 16: Magus Night

Marisa wages war against Nausicca. Nausicca switches to Keine's form as a way of defense, of course, the teacher flies in and attacks after, the situation turning out well. Nausicca is defeated, however, before she fades, she promises her return is inevitable, and tries to force herself into Keine to bring out an eternal EX side. This fails, and she tries to force herself into Rumia, Marisa quickly charming Rumia's ribbon and keeping Nausicca bound from ever appearing as long as Rumia keeps the ribbon on. Cirno is found and quickly flies out, Keine smiling, trailing behind. (Nothing really changed.)

Chapter 17: Happily ever after?

Marisa and Keine finally kiss as the student brigade cheers, Cirno sets up a plan so that she, herself, can get into a relationship with Tewi as Marisa makes a few jokes at the nineball's expense, Keine leads the student brigade and Marisa back to the human village as things seem to be looking up for the moment. End of fanfic! (Nothing seemed to be changed here.)


End file.
